How Come BOE Candidate Stephen Austin Won’t Say What His Employment Is??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Nope. Proportionality and justification for withholding information. Also, legal disclosure requirements. You still don’t seem to understand those concepts.

Activists will use anything they can, even making things up, to get him fired. Doesn’t matter if it isn’t true. He will be tainted in the eyes of his employer.

You must live in a world where people never invoke the mantra that the ends justify the means.

Jaw-dropping levels of paranoia here. Really astonishing, even by DCUM standards.

Nope. Just being realistic. Let’s add realpolitik to the concepts you don’t understand.

I don't think that word means what you think it means.

I guess you didn’t look up the term.

[Anonymous]

I would encourage everyone voting to go to Mr. Austin's webpage.

See how he is reacting to opponents, his experience in BOE affairs and his supporters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the William Shine from Bethesda, who contributed $200 to Stephen Austin's campaign, is Bill Shine, the Fox News guy and former Trump White House chief of staff?

I also wonder how the North Potomac family that contributed $450 would feel if they were reassigned from Frost MS/Wootton HS, which are further away, to their closer, neighborhood schools of Ridgeview MS/Quince Orchard HS.

Notice how dirty the anti-Austin people are -- naming names of campaign donors. Yes, this is in the campaign finance reports, but it's like they are picking apart each donor and their address. This has really gotten out of hand.

Who makes a donation to a campaign with the concern their address and name will be discussed in detail by the campaign's opponents?

Why is wrong to check out his donors? We should be able to do that for all parties.

As for "dirty anti -Austin" , his own website is not what I would call nice. He's definitely got some anger issues and doesn't exactly focus on what he will do.

Give some examples of what he brings to the table experience wise?

On Facebook someone asked that question of him and he didn't answer, he just sent them to his website. That has me concerned. He should be all over the answers to what he want to do and what's his plan outlined. Not just oh my opponent is a .......

I"m not on his Facebook group, but I don't see anyone calling out individual donors, anywhere, for the other BOE candidates.

People are calling out the PACs donating to each campaign, which I think is fair game. It's like the anti-Austin supporters are trying to intimidate individuals from donating to his campaign.

Of course they are. Guilt by association. If someone donates to your campaign, you’re responsible for everything they’ve ever done in their lives. Everything and everyone is fair game, except when the other side does it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:People here are focusing on the wrong things. Austin has kids IN MCPS. Most BOE members do not. It's important to have people on the board who really understand things from the perspective of a current parent and who have a vested interest in the system.

So I assume you won't also be voting for Steve Solomon, given that he has no kids in MCPS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage everyone voting to go to Mr. Austin's webpage.

See how he is reacting to opponents, his experience in BOE affairs and his supporters.

Summary?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I"m not on his Facebook group, but I don't see anyone calling out individual donors, anywhere, for the other BOE candidates.

People are calling out the PACs donating to each campaign, which I think is fair game. It's like the anti-Austin supporters are trying to intimidate individuals from donating to his campaign.

Sure they are. It's even in media reports. When you donate to a candidate, it's public information. You can find the campaign finanace reports here: https://campaignfinance.maryland.gov/Public/ViewFiledReportsMain

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Of course they are. Guilt by association. If someone donates to your campaign, you’re responsible for everything they’ve ever done in their lives. Everything and everyone is fair game, except when the other side does it.

That's absurd, PP. Accepting a donation from a person/group is accepting a donation from that person/group. The candidate always has the option of declining the donation. This is something that candidates actually do, from time to time! Nobody is forcing candidates to unwillingly accept donations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People here are focusing on the wrong things. Austin has kids IN MCPS. Most BOE members do not. It's important to have people on the board who really understand things from the perspective of a current parent and who have a vested interest in the system.

So I assume you won't also be voting for Steve Solomon, given that he has no kids in MCPS?

DP. Yes, and Shebra Evans DOES have kids in MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Of course they are. Guilt by association. If someone donates to your campaign, you’re responsible for everything they’ve ever done in their lives. Everything and everyone is fair game, except when the other side does it.

That's absurd, PP. Accepting a donation from a person/group is accepting a donation from that person/group. The candidate always has the option of declining the donation. This is something that candidates actually do, from time to time! Nobody is forcing candidates to unwillingly accept donations.

But they don’t know everything about their donors do they? It’s only after they’ve been dragged through the mud by their opponent and the media that they even have an opportunity to return a donation. Even if they do return it, they’ll always be tainted by the fact that they took the money in the first place. As Winston Churchill once said, “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Let's take your points one by one.

Yes, big corporations fire people all the time in response to a vocal group. History is replete with examples. They might not fire him for his political positions during a BOE run, but you can bet that if they want to get rid of him to get public pressure off them as a corporation, you can bet they will find a reason. It has absolutely nothing to do with how good someone is at their job.

You concede that where he works isn't a legal requirement. Discussion is over from a legal perspective. What he does for his employer is also confidential unless he's been authorized to speak on its behalf, so any questions you might want to ask him about his work at his employer are off the table. So what's the point of knowing where he works? He could speak in generalities about his finance background and skill set (e.g., budget analysis, auditing, fraud detection, etc... But again, what does this have to do with where he works?

As for his resume and hedge fund experience, the same rule(s) apply. He can't likely discuss what he did at those funds in any detail. He can speak in generalities. In regard to his leaving, he might have an agreement in place that precludes discussions. This doesn't mean he has anything to hide. It's a very common practice with departing employees as part of an exit interview. I bet you've signed an offer letter with a confidentiality clause, as well as an exit letter saying the same thing.

Regarding his financial expertise ALL Mr. Austin does is speak in generalities. But, at the same time, he wants voters to trust that he should be on the BOE because he is a “finance guy.” This, “transparency,” and “neighborhood schools” are his talking points. Well, excuse me for wanting some details on his “finance” experience. His vague references to working at Merrill Lynch (when the company was crippled and almost dead because of ridiculously risky subprime mortgage ventures and related schemes) and then at a couple of hedge funds (ya know, the people who do leveraged buy outs and saddle companies with mountains of debt) just don’t give me a lot of confidence in his “expertise.” I’m not willing to buy a pig in a poke.

Where is this transparency of which he speaks? Seems like a foreign concept to him or perhaps transparency is just for others.

His avowed concern about neighborhood schools is just not backed up by anything he has ever done for the schools because, by his own admission, he has done nothing. He only got concerned when the prospect of boundary changes posed a potential threat to his property value. At least his HOA backers have been up front about their reason for supporting Mr. Austin. I applaud their honesty and transparency. Mr. Austin could learn something from them.

Imagine if Steve Austin took this position while serving on the BoE - essentially, We are only going to tell you the things we're legally obligated to tell you, and anything else is none of your beeswax.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the William Shine from Bethesda, who contributed $200 to Stephen Austin's campaign, is Bill Shine, the Fox News guy and former Trump White House chief of staff?

I also wonder how the North Potomac family that contributed $450 would feel if they were reassigned from Frost MS/Wootton HS, which are further away, to their closer, neighborhood schools of Ridgeview MS/Quince Orchard HS.

Right? Portions of that neighborhood have a 40 to 45 min bus ride to their currently assigned MS, yet the parents seem fine with the loooong bus ride. No complaints there.

At least they get a bus ride. We have a 20-25 minute drive with no bus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the William Shine from Bethesda, who contributed $200 to Stephen Austin's campaign, is Bill Shine, the Fox News guy and former Trump White House chief of staff?

I also wonder how the North Potomac family that contributed $450 would feel if they were reassigned from Frost MS/Wootton HS, which are further away, to their closer, neighborhood schools of Ridgeview MS/Quince Orchard HS.

Right? Portions of that neighborhood have a 40 to 45 min bus ride to their currently assigned MS, yet the parents seem fine with the loooong bus ride. No complaints there.

At least they get a bus ride. We have a 20-25 minute drive with no bus.

Why?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Of course they are. Guilt by association. If someone donates to your campaign, you’re responsible for everything they’ve ever done in their lives. Everything and everyone is fair game, except when the other side does it.

That's absurd, PP. Accepting a donation from a person/group is accepting a donation from that person/group. The candidate always has the option of declining the donation. This is something that candidates actually do, from time to time! Nobody is forcing candidates to unwillingly accept donations.

But they don’t know everything about their donors do they? It’s only after they’ve been dragged through the mud by their opponent and the media that they even have an opportunity to return a donation. Even if they do return it, they’ll always be tainted by the fact that they took the money in the first place. As Winston Churchill once said, “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.”

A prudent candidate would do some due diligence on large contributions from unknown parties, don't you think? Not to mention due diligence on large contributions from known parties.

It seems to me that many Steve Austin supporters are unfamiliar with the democratic process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage everyone voting to go to Mr. Austin's webpage.

See how he is reacting to opponents, his experience in BOE affairs and his supporters.

Summary?

I went to his webpage. I can not find any experience in the area of education and or anything that pertains to the job at hand. Doesn't mean he's not qualified, but does give me pause. Looks like he's financial planner of some sort.

Job, it says he's started at non profit, and it looks like that hasn't been around long. It's called Montgomery County Neighbors for local schools.

His social media, ie twitter and FB are harsh, a few posts gave me definite pause about his capability to look at things objectively if someone decides to disagree with him. He definitely went overboard when talking with student advocates. Whether he liked their stance or not doesn't give him a pass to be professional and calm. He seems to pass this behavior off as him defending himself, I'm not clear on that. Easy to see for yourself.

I keep finding this "f Bethesda works in finance and started a Facebook group to organize opposition to the analysis. His slogans are “Neighborhood Schools” and “Great Local Schools For All.” While this might sound harmless, these slogans have a long history of racist ties, as they were used by some white parents to protest school integration in the 1960s. His campaign has other troubling connections: he received $3,000 from an organization founded by Zhenya Li, who fights local pro-immigrant laws, and he’s donated money to an anti-school redistricting lawsuit brought by a lawyer who spent over a decade fighting the inclusion of LGBTQ curriculum in Montgomery County schools. In recent weeks, his campaign has illegally placed hundreds of signs on public roads and at parks and schools."

He claims that is all not true. The above paragraph has been in quite a few periodicals. Again I do not know if it's true, so I am focusing on his demeanor online and it's not pretty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage everyone voting to go to Mr. Austin's webpage.

See how he is reacting to opponents, his experience in BOE affairs and his supporters.

Summary?

I went to his webpage. I can not find any experience in the area of education and or anything that pertains to the job at hand. Doesn't mean he's not qualified, but does give me pause. Looks like he's financial planner of some sort.

Job, it says he's started at non profit, and it looks like that hasn't been around long. It's called Montgomery County Neighbors for local schools.

His social media, ie twitter and FB are harsh, a few posts gave me definite pause about his capability to look at things objectively if someone decides to disagree with him. He definitely went overboard when talking with student advocates. Whether he liked their stance or not doesn't give him a pass to be professional and calm. He seems to pass this behavior off as him defending himself, I'm not clear on that. Easy to see for yourself.

I keep finding this "f Bethesda works in finance and started a Facebook group to organize opposition to the analysis. His slogans are “Neighborhood Schools” and “Great Local Schools For All.” While this might sound harmless, these slogans have a long history of racist ties, as they were used by some white parents to protest school integration in the 1960s. His campaign has other troubling connections: he received $3,000 from an organization founded by Zhenya Li, who fights local pro-immigrant laws, and he’s donated money to an anti-school redistricting lawsuit brought by a lawyer who spent over a decade fighting the inclusion of LGBTQ curriculum in Montgomery County schools. In recent weeks, his campaign has illegally placed hundreds of signs on public roads and at parks and schools."

He claims that is all not true. The above paragraph has been in quite a few periodicals. Again I do not know if it's true, so I am focusing on his demeanor online and it's not pretty.

I am independent. I thought BOE is nonpartisan so candidate’s party affiliation is irrelevant. Is it still true in MC?